Mexican remittances jump 13 pct as peso weakens

International Herald Tribune/AP ^ | December 1, 2008

[SwinneySwitch]

MEXICO CITY: The amount of dollars sent home by Mexicans living abroad jumped 13 percent in October as a weaker peso gave the greenback more buying power, Mexico's central bank said Monday.

October remittances swelled to $2.4 billion, up from $2.2 billion for the same month in 2007, the Banco de Mexico reported.

The peso dropped to record lows in October, briefly trading at 14 to the dollar as investors shed developing world assets and fled to the relative safety of the U.S. currency.

A stronger dollar means dollars sent home buy much more in Mexico. It's a wage hike of sorts for the relatives of migrants lucky enough to still find jobs in the U.S.

Remittances are Mexico's second largest revenue source. In the first eight months, 2008 remittances were down 4 percent. But October's jump cut the loss to 1.9 percent, with a nine-month total of $20 billion compared to $20.4 billion for the same period in 2007.

The strengthened dollar might even lure a new wave of immigration to the United States, analysts say. Emigration has been down 42 percent over the past two years, according to the Mexican government, because of beefed-up border security and an increase in workplace raids in the interior of the United States.

"Migrants who would otherwise be inclined to leave will stay in the U.S., and people who would be inclined to stay (in Mexico) will leave," said Michael Fix, senior vice president with the Migration Policy Institute in Washington, D.C.

[SwinneySwitch]

Today 1 USD = 13.5600 MXN

[AuntB]

“A stronger dollar means dollars sent home buy much more in Mexico. It’s a wage hike of sorts for the relatives of migrants lucky enough to still find jobs in the U.S.”

How special...our rotten economy still profits the illegal alien over the citizen.

[meandog]

Mucho gracias, el stupido gringos!

[FrankR]

Hey...put a stop to that and in only 291.6 months we'll have our $700-billion bailout reimbursed. That's only 24 years...less time than a typical Fannie Mae mortgage.

That "drip, drip, drip" sound you hear is our country, leaking into Mexico

[ksm1]

It’s better than what it was under Clinton, but it’s still not good. Vicente Fox and Felipe Calderon have done a reasonably good job of reform and privitization in Mexico, so their economy has improved since the 1990s—and they’ve had to make these pro-growth policies since the wide open door was (somewhat, not completely) closed with Bush.

Here’s to hoping that The Messiah doesn’t re-open it and give back incentives for the Mexican government to pursue economic policies of laziness.

[HuntsvilleTxVeteran]

Old pesos were about 12.5 to a dollar.
About 15 years ago peso inflation was so high because
of the theft by the Mexican government rulers that it
took about 3000 pesos to buy 1 dollar.
A peso that was about 8 cents became about 0.03 cents.

Too bad the poor people of Mexico does not have weapons
or training to fight the Government thugs and dope thugs
private armies.

[TexasCajun]

Ok! Now do ya hear that sucking sound!

[SwinneySwitch]

Peso ping!

If you want on, or off this S. Texas/Mexico ping list, please FReepMail me.

[gubamyster]

ping

[HuntsvilleTxVeteran]

Old pesos were about 12.5 to a dollar.
About 15 years ago peso inflation was so high because
of the theft by the Mexican government rulers that it
took about 3000 pesos to buy 1 dollar.
A peso that was about 8 cents became about 0.03 cents.
The Mexican looters came out with a new peso that took
about 240 old pesos to buy one new peso.

[org.whodat]

Mucho gracias, el stupido gringos!

LOL